1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to pipe fittings utilized in shower or bath installations. More particularly, the present invention relates to pipe fitting adapters utilized in tile shower installations.
2. Related Art
Until very recently, the construction of shower floors conventionally included at least five primary components, including, listed in ascending order: a shower subfloor (including a pre-sloped layer); a shower pan; a mortar bed; a shower drain; and a floor surfacing material (e.g., ceramic tiles). This type of installation utilizes a well-known, two-piece drain to which the shower pan is sealably attached beneath the mortar bed. The term “two-piece” drain is used because the drain typically includes at least two components that “sandwich” the shower pan between one another to clamp the shower pan to the drain. These five components are discussed in some detail below.
The subfloor is typically a concrete floor or a wood floor of the house or dwelling in which the shower is installed. The subfloor provides the support base upon which the other elements of the shower floor rest. In order for the shower pan to drain most effectively, the subfloor will primarily be slightly sloped toward the drain so that fluids on top of the pan will migrate or flow toward the drain. One of the common methods of achieving this slope is by “skim coating” or “floating” the subfloor with a thin layer of suitable mortar applied, in an appropriate slope, prior to installing the shower pan over the thin layer of mortar.
The shower pan is most often a relatively tough plastic sheet on the order of 30 to 40 mils in thickness. These types of shower pans are generally available in rolls of 4, 5 or 6 feet in width which are installed within the shower enclosure. Also, pre-fitted or pre-formed shower pans are offered by some manufacturers.
The mortar bed is generally formed from a sand and cement mixture that is installed over the shower pan as a damp, compactable, coarse material. The mortar bed material is often called a “dry pack” and has only enough water in it to hydrate the cement and make the mortar bed compactable. The mortar bed cures into a hard concrete base capable of supporting the overlaying tiles or other floor covering. Because it has a large proportion of sand, the mortar bed remains very porous and will readily absorb water after it has cured. The mortar bed typically varies in thickness from about ¾ of an inch to about 3 inches, depending upon the installation, and is generally sloped toward the center (or to the location where the drain is located) so that water will flow on the surface of the floor toward the floor drain.
Generally, the mortar bed serves two primary purposes: to provide slope to the floor surface so it will drain; and to provide a bedding surface for the overlying floor material (e.g., ceramic tiles) to rest upon and bond to. The mortar bed rests on top of the shower pan, with the entire installation relying upon the shower pan for waterproofing the floor of the shower. The mortar bed is itself very porous, contributing nothing to the waterproofing of the shower. In fact, if the mortar bed is not properly drained, it can actually create a waterproofing liability. The mortar bed quickly absorbs any water that contacts it and will hold a considerable amount of water until it becomes saturated, unless it is properly drained.
The drain component of the above-referenced shower assembly is generally at least a two-piece assembly that is designed to fulfill three primary purposes: to achieve a water-tight connection to the shower pan; to provide drainage to the mortar bed; and to drain the shower floor or other wet surface. This type of drain is often referred to as a “double seepage drain” or “double drainage drain.” This is because it drains the floor surface while also allowing water to seep from the mortar bed into the drain through “weep holes” formed in sides of the drain adjacent the mortar bed. The weep holes are usually holes, grooves, slots or other openings formed through the drain collar, or occasionally in the drain neck.
The drain generally includes a collar that attaches to a drain flange of the drain to “sandwich” the shower pan between the collar and the drain, which creates a water-tight seal between the pan and the drain. The weep holes allow water from the mortar bed to drain through the collar and into the drain while the water on the top of the floor surface runs down through the top of the drain. It is a common practice for installers to place a pile of gravel or small pieces of broken tile around and above the weep holes located on the drain collar, prior to installing the mortar bed, to provide better access for free water flow from the mortar bed into the weep holes. The aggregate generally allows more surface area of the mortar bed to be drained and provides a highly porous substrate to allow fluid to flow freely to the weep holes.
While the shower pan liner-type of shower floor installation has been used for many years, a different type of assembly has recently become popular and involves the use of a bondable (or bonded) waterproof membrane. In general, a bondable waterproof membrane bonds directly to the mortar bed (or suitable equivalent) and protects the mortar bed (and any underlying structure such as the subfloor) from becoming saturated. While bondable waterproof membranes have become popular, the incorporation of bondable waterproof membranes in floor drain installations has required that drain fittings other than the conventional two-piece drains be developed. This is because conventional two-piece floor drains were designed to connect to shower pan liners below the mortar bed and so did not allow a secure, watertight connection to bondable waterproof membranes at the top of the drain assembly. For this reason, drain fittings with integrated bonding flanges were developed for use with bondable waterproof membranes.
Thus, when a shower installation is plumbed, one of two types of drains can be installed on the waste pipe by the plumber: the conventional, two-piece drain, or the relatively newly developed integrated bonding flange drain. As the type of drain that is installed on the waste pipe generally determines the type of waterproofing system used (e.g., shower pan vs. bondable waterproof membrane), a tile installer is often limited by the plumbing installed prior to the tile installer arriving at the job. If a bondable waterproof membrane installation is desired, and a two-piece drain was installed by the plumber, the tile installer has been required to either switch to a shower-pan installation or, at great loss of time and expense, remove the two-piece drain and replace it with an integrated bonding flange drain.
Thus, while advent of the bondable waterproof membrane waterproofing system has been accepted by tile installers, the tile installer has to date not been able to adapt a two-piece drain for use with a bondable waterproof membrane.